chickens: "nearly flightless birds" or...? just for fun!

It would seem that the "nearly flightless" classification of chickens does not apply at my place. I have a bunch of phoenixes which, research says, are known for their flying ability.... So WHY are one of my LF hens and one of my LF roos the ones going up on the roof of my house from halfway across the yard and NOT the "little fliers"?! How well do your "nearly flightless" birds fly? (Do they get up into the oddest, most unfathomable of locations?) And do you encourage flight in your birds or clip wings/have a ceiling on their run and low roosts in the coop?

Just for fun, as so far in my personal chicken experience, the non-fliers are such simply because of chickens' natural laziness

AWESOME! Now THAT'S what I'm talkin about! Didn't click on the last link, though, but if any of my birds - despite their breeding - exceed the 200' mark I will be sure to do so!

When I first brought home chickens, ex-farmer hubby INSISTED on clipping wings.... Well, my set-up is NOT predator-proof so, with the onset of winter, I lost a few. No biggy, the ones that were taken were not of optimum health, etc.... But as a result, I have not condoned wing clipping since... It did NOT prevent the birds from flying 12' up into a tree to roost but rather only made it more difficult to do so (as I mentioned, in my experience thus far, they do what they want to no matter what BUT for the most part, are inherantly lazy!) I am happy that my birds can fly The fence for the run is max 4' high... The "chill" chickens will wait til I open the main door while the outcasts/adventurous/independent ones fly out before i even wake up in the morning At least I know that when the snow falls this year and the coons/foxes come hunting, they'll have one heckuva time with it!

Loved the videos! Not surprising my LF duel purpose Speckled Sussex aren't balanced enough for any real distance. The most they can manage is the porch rail or a bench. My Barnvelders can manage some distance. They will fly about 25 feet toward me only a few feet off the ground. They can also fly over a 4' fence and one likes to fly up on the garage roof.

Loved the videos! Not surprising my LF duel purpose Speckled Sussex aren't balanced enough for any real distance. The most they can manage is the porch rail or a bench. My Barnvelders can manage some distance. They will fly about 25 feet toward me only a few feet off the ground. They can also fly over a 4' fence and one likes to fly up on the garage roof.

Click to expand...

Sussex are about the same size range as an australorp, yeah? My roo that gets picked on, thereby resorting to flight, is a blue aussie/houdan x. To look at him, you'd say "no chance making that roof!" But he does so - regularly - from about 50'! Granted, none of my big BA's have done it, but they're like some big cartel or gang or something - they're the "watchers". 3 fly out (of the coop run) every morning, one stays behind to guard whomever decides to stay penned until I release the masses in the early afternoon. Poor Greybeard isn't as welcome as I'd hoped and, as a result, has developed flight beyond the "hopping a 4' fence" that his distant counterparts have. I think - with most adopted chicken behaviours - it probably all comes down to circumstances and what they're WILLING to do, as opposed to what they're breeding INCLINES them to do. If breeding were the rule, I'd have a roof full of phoenixes and no-one else, lol!

Flying that distance just a few feet above ground is valuable! I don't know what you might have for predators where you are, but in my experience thus far, flight is of importance!